“Reading and writing are acts of empathy and faith. Guard that trust carefully — in this rapidly changing business, it’s the only sure thing.” ~Erin Keane

"Never give up. And most importantly, be true to yourself. Write from your heart, in your own voice, and about what you believe in." ~ Louise Brown

"Write something to suit yourself and many people will like it; write something to suit everybody and scarcely anyone will care for it." ~Jesse Stuart

"A writer's job is to take one thing and make it stand for twenty." ~ Virginia Woolf

Saturday, May 19, 2012

Google/Blogger Profiles

You better be careful what you click, or your Blogger profile will go away and instead become your Google + profile. I ran into this all the time on the A to Z Challenge. I'd click on a blogger's name, which should take me direct to their Blogger blog or profile, but instead I ended up at their Google + account. What the--? I had to search all over the place to find their blog link, G + would tell me I must add them to my circle to see anything, and by then I was out of there.

Every now and then I check out my old, defunct blog From the Shadows to the Page to make sure it hasn't been infected by spammers. Last time I was there, Blogger almost got me sucked into switching my profile over. I know how tricky they can be. I didn't do it. It's a bad idea.

I've always had this sneaking suspicion that Google, who owns the massively successful Blogger, would somehow try to morph it into their not very successful venture, Google +. I suspect this profile bait and switch is just the beginning of the end of our beloved Blogger.

Next it'll be transporting our Blogger accounts into our Google + accounts to make them one. Want to write a new post, it ends up on G +. Bye bye Blogger. The capacity is there. We could all be blogging on G + if we wanted. I think that's what Google wants. Not what I want. I don't care for Google + at all. I set up my profile, occasionally put up something there and then ignore it for the next 5 weeks.

Anyway, this is me being paranoid, or it's me predicting the very near future. Whatever, we'll see. Just so you know-- I can also interpret dreams.

54 comments:

I do have a Google+ account that I work with every so often when I'm mad at Facebook. I have seen that and have been careful not to link them together. I wonder what we will have to do - all switch to Wordpress? I hope not.

Does this explain why I found yesterday that I do not follow any blogs? Say what???There was something about Google +1 and a whole rigmarole about setting something up so I could follow blogs… But I already do!This morning the menace disappeared. I’m back to having the blogs I already follow easy to see and, well, to follow.You’re not paranoid. Something is going on in Blogosphere. Seems they have a great thing going, and are messing with it to possibly make it generate more income in ways we can’t even imagine. Why else would you mess with such an easy-to-use and super successful product?No one has learned from the beginning of Facebook’s decline: you got a good thing, don’t spoil it.

I fear you may be right in your predictions. Google+ has been a big failure, though I'm not entirely sure why (other than the recent horrible design change).

I have linked my Google+ profile to Blogger, but all my posts are public and I only really post links to my blog posts so I don't think anyone can end up too lost. My visits and comments are up so I don't think it's been detrimental.

Let's hope this isn't the beginning of the end for Blogger (despite everyone telling me that no one will ever take me seriously as a writer if I use Blogger), I love it and Wordpress is not the perfect thing everyone makes it out to be.

Angelina, Really? People have told you that you won't be taken seriously with a Blogger blog? How funny! I didn't realize that where we blog categorizes us. There's so much snobbery associated with the writing/publishing industry that sometimes it just makes me laugh.

Ah, this is interesting. I noticed when I'd clicked onto a few bloggers profiles, it took me to their G+ page and then I couldn't find their actual link back to their blog to return comments. A little frustrating. If we could figure out what google is up to, we'd be squilionaires! Now, let me tell you about my dream last night...

I keep checking to make sure my blogger profile hasn't linked to my Google + profile. If G+ had made it easy for anyone to link to their blog, then sure I might have switched, but as it is, it's terrible!

I also miss the following function since they took it away (again a strategy to move people towards Google +). Yes, I can still have Google Friend Connect in my sidebar if I want, but I much preferred the quiet utility of the little follow button at the top of every Blogger blog. The fiends, the fiends.

Sounds Like something that I missed so far and something that I want to continue missing. A friend sent me an invitation to Google +, but I didn't know what it was, so I ignored it. Probably a good thing I did!

Hi Karen - I wondered what was going on .. ok .. thanks for telling us. I have a G+ a/c but don't use it and don't link to it ..

If Google would let me comment on embedded comment boxes I'd be grateful and I do have a blogger a/c, and if they didn't lose my comments so the don't go to peoples' blogs (some) and either end up in spam or not at all, or only go via email ... I'd be extremely grateful ..

And if they'd get their .... right etc etc etc .. it would help us all - BEFORE they start something else!!

I feel the same way about this, and had the same experience during the Challenge. It's not easy to find blog links on the Google+ pages at all. I tried using Google+ and didn't care for it, and I think you have a great point about trying to use Blogger's success to boost that product. Very frustrating!

I haven't even set up my Google+, and I never know what I'm doing if I stumble upon someone else's. Like you, I'm more than likely to just leave again, which is a shame if I'm trying to visit the blog of a new follower.

I'd be surprised if Google turns Blogger into G+, but I've been surprised before! :D That said, I almost merged my G+ profile and my Blogger profile, but it started asking me a bunch of questions I didn't want to answer. So I cancelled it. We'll see how this plays out~ :o) <3

I did have mine connected (which originally resulted in my blogs vanishing for an hour while they sorted it out) but have since separated them again. Got tired of emails from people who couldn't find my blog.

I've experienced the same thing while visiting blogs! I didn't realize it was a bait and switch kind of thing. I'd end up having to Google the blogger's name to find them (ironic, huh?) I'm not a huge Google + fan either. I'm sure it's fine, but who has the time to figure it out? Not me!

I think you are correct. I have been noticing this trending as well. The Google + profiles are rather annoying although I'm getting used to them. I guess it's related to the new Blogger interface as well. So far I've resisted it all and now I've noticed that the Blogger message has changed from saying that all of Blogger will convert to the new interface in April to that it will all change in the coming year. Maybe they're encountering more resistance than anticipated.

I'm signed up with Google + but I rarely use it other than to link to posts and such. Let's face it--nothing's gonna stay the same because it all keeps changing. I'm not happy about it, but I'm not the boss of the world and I can't stop the changes. I need that boss job.

This flummoxed me as well, Karen. However, there is a small workaround: When you get to their Google+ profile, locate the "ABOUT" tab at the top next to the "photos", "posts", etc. tabs. Click it and look at the bottom of the page, you'll normally see a "links" and "other profiles" link. Blogs, Twitter, etc. are usually there.

Wow, I don't understand Google + enough to know what to do. I have an acct. there, but only link posts. Is that risky? It seems like another way to gain exposure, but maybe it's not worth it. What do you think, Karen? Can you email me? Thank you!

I don't use Google +. It just seems an extra step, everythings hidden behind a sign in, and to be honest, it just seems a giant faff (pain) to do anything. I hope they don't mess with Blogger but I guess this is a free thing and we are sort of at mercy of the company who owns it. Makes me worry though - especially having been on here for four years or so. That's a lot of posts to export should I have to!

Jolly, I don't think you have anything to worry about, like losing your blog posts. Since Google owns both Blogger and Google+ they would surely give us plenty of warning if they chose to merge the too. Google has a huge investment in Blogger, it's very successful for them, and I doubt if they'd do anything to alienate all us Bloggers! If they decide to merge, I bet they would give us all plenty of time to sign up for G+ and get with things, like they have done with the new interface. (Which I have grown to really like, btw!)

Google + is a joke, but I wound up on it anyway before I knew better. I'm hoping Google will see how far away from FB it really is and either abandon it (which I doubt) or come up with something better and more user-friendly.

I don't understand this and I used to be an IT person. I went with the new interface because I thought we would have to after April. I don't know if that means I'm using Google+ or not. I don't like the new interface, but I haven't lost anything. Right now I'm having problems with my follower widget not working. Or at least I think it isn't. Anyway, I thought Google bought Blogger and therefore we were stuck with whatever Google decided to do. Which is why I switched over, but I still don't understand about Google+ account vs. a Blogger account. I guess I have to pay more attention to this. Thanks Karen for this.

Please stay and make yourself at home. I made cookies.

This Blog Powered by Diet Coke and Chocolate

Yay Twitter!

My Books

My self-help memoir now available in print and ebook

How to Eat Like a Normal Person and Still Lose Weight

Helena Carr is finally ready to live. But first she's got to wake up from her coma.

"Gowen guides her readers into a world rich with difficulties and limitations, yet leads them through the trials to a wonderfully satisfying ending.... I strongly encourage this book for anyone looking for a unique and uplifting book." --The Road to a Dream

Actually, this IS your mother's cookbook....

"The best dumplings recipe ever! They actually melt in your mouth light and fuffy! Well written recipes that have stood the test of time. One if my favorite new cook books. So far every recipe is a keeper."

A novel about love, marriage and divorce, not necessarily in that order

"What a wonderful book about enduring love. A truly inspiring book about the trials and tribulations of a marriage. The characters are engrossing and the storylines inspiring."

Take a peek inside the lives of a real Mormon family

"I just loved the central character, Marcie. She's a young mother, trying to do her best for her family but who often is overwhelmed by life - like the rest of us. I loved the spirituality that is an integral part of this Mormon family's life."

#2 in my Diamond series "Steel Magnolias with Mormon characters"

"Gowen has an amazing talent for rich and meaningful prose. The moment you open the first page you are captivated by her writing style. Through her narrator she gets into a conversation with you and it feels as though her characters are letting you in on their deepest thoughts and feelings. I was so pleasantly surprised by how deeply I enjoyed this book, it was a real treasure."